Headscratching Split for Seward Softball in Home Opener

The old saying goes ‘you see something new every day in sports’ certainly reined true on Saturday at Lady Saints Field in Liberal as after hammering visiting Northeastern 20-6 in game one of their double header, Seward was completely shut down in a 9-1 game two loss to split the afternoon with the Plainswomen.

Winless Northeastern was the first to score in game one of the twinbill as the Plainswomen used a walk and three straight two out hits in the top half of the 1st to plate a pair of runs and take an early 2-0 lead. Seward answered right back in their first at bats as Hannah Lopez tripled home a run and scored three pitches later when Kristyna Garcia doubled to tie the game at two. After a 1-2-3 top of the 2nd for Northeastern, the Lady Saints exploded with the bats. Seward sent 14 hitters to the plate in their half of the 2nd inning, scoring 11 times, highlighted by a three run home run from Brittany Corrales and a two run double from the sophomore later in the inning to blow the game wide open to 13-2. Northeastern got three runs back in the 3rd to make it a 13-5 game, but Seward matched that and raised the Plainswomen two with a five run 3rd of their own, again spurred by a two run double from Corrales to stretch the lead to 18-5. The Lady Saints hit the 20 run mark in the bottom of the 4th with a pair of runs and a single run for Northeastern in the 5th proved valueless as Seward finished off the 20-6 run rule win in five.

The Lady Saints slugged out 26 hits in the win, getting multiple hits from all nine players in the lineup. Corrales was the star, going 4-4 with 9 total bases and 7 RBI’s in the win, missing the cycle by only a triple in one of the better individual performances in school history. Callie Silvers-Harnly also went 4-4 for the Lady Saints, doubling once and driving in 2 runs. Kennedy Brunson, Garcia, Jaidyn Mawhinney, and Venice Batts all had 3 hits for the Lady Saints as well. Kelly Kearney earned the win in the circle, going the distance, allowing 8 hits and 6 runs to improve to 3-1 on the year.

SEWARD COUNTY/NORTHEASTERN GAME ONE BOX SCORE<http://www.sewardsaints.com/sports/sball/2015-16/boxscores/20160220_sf9a.xml>

The Lady Saints again took an early lead in game two of the double header, getting an RBI groundout from Lopez in the bottom of the 1st to go ahead 1-0. Little did they know, that would be all the offense they would muster in the contest. Neither team could get anything going early on and it remained a 1-0 game in favor of Seward to the 4th. In the Plainswomen 4th, Northeastern broke through, getting a two out, two run double to jump in front 2-1. Northeastern continued to swing the bats in the 5th, scoring three more times and just like that, Seward found themselves in a 5-1 hole. The Lady Saints had a prime opportunity to get back in the game slip right through their hands in the bottom of the 5th as they loaded the bases with three straight one out hits, but then lined into a double play to end the threat and keep it a 5-1 game in favor of Northeastern. The Plainswomen added another in the 6th to make it 6-1 and Seward failed to answer again in the bottom of the inning. In the 7th, Northeastern added three more insurance runs, but they wouldn’t need them as the Lady Saints managed just a two out single for offense in their final at bats, falling 9-1 to split the double header.

Seward was outhit 12-6 in game two of the double header and committed 6 errors in the loss. Corrales had 2 more hits in the defeat. Mawhinney took the loss on the mound for Seward, allowing 12 hits, 9 runs, just 4 earned, while striking out 5 to fall to 1-4 in the circle on the season.

SEWARD COUNTY/NORTHEASTERN GAME TWO BOX SCORE<http://www.sewardsaints.com/sports/sball/2015-16/boxscores/20160220_bfbv.xml>

The split moves Seward to 4-7 on the year while Northeastern earned their first win of the season to improve to 1-8.

Things will not get any easier for the Lady Saints as next weekend they travel to Odessa, Texas to take on four different teams from the Lone Star State in a busy five game weekend starting Friday.

Roy Allen